Little Starfleet
by Boo2012
Summary: For anyone who has read Mosaic knows that Kathryn and Admiral Paris were captured for probably less than a day before being rescued... my story takes that and makes it last longer.
1. Chapter 1

For anyone who has read Mosaic knows that Kathryn and Admiral Paris were captured for probably less than a day before being rescued... my story takes that and makes it last longer.

Rated M due to scenes of torture and rape and swearing.

Enjoy!

=/\=

Ensign Kathryn Janeway woke on the damp filthy blanket, for the third time, it was easy to keep track of the days and night through the tiny bar window; keeping track of time itself was a different matter. How had this happened, how did they get here? They were questions that kept her awake into the night. She stretched out her legs that had been huddled up to her chest all night, a failed attempt to keep warm, they were stiff. She had been onboard the USS Icarus on the Arias expedition, her and Admiral Owen Paris had taken a shuttle for a survey, when they'd been attacked by Cardassians, now she was locked up in a cell, 3 cement walls, one bar wall that held the door, there was no flooring, just mud and grass. A little room came off the right wall, holding a metal bench with a hole in the middle, the toilet. Light came in through the tiny window, or the flickering lights in the walkway between the cages. Admiral Paris had been placed in a cell on the opposite side, just off to her right, they had been fed, cold porridge and water in the mornings, and scraps in the evening.

She'd never seen a Cardassian before, not in person, they'd learnt about them in Exobiology at the Academy, so far the few she'd seen were all male, dressed in what looked like leather, normally carrying rifles. Their faces and neck were corded with cartilage, their skin a greyish colour. They weren't pleasing to the eye, she found them intimidating, but she sure wasn't going to let it show.

It was the day before when they'd come for Paris, not long after breakfast, two of them had marched him off at gun point, it wasn't long after that that the screaming had started. There was a whooshing noise of the main door to the area opening, footsteps approached from her left, she stood, damned if they were going to see her huddled in the corner. She brushed off what dirt she could from her uniform, the same uniform she'd been wearing since they'd taken them prisoner, she didn't bother with her hair, strains of it had fallen out of her plait; it was in need of a good washing and brush. Though at some point between being in the shuttle and first waking here they'd taken her boots and socks, her feet were cold and dirty.

The male Cardassian stopped in front her cell, opening the door slightly he dropped a tray onto the floor, spilling what little contents it held, without casting her a glance he shut the door and locked it, proceeding to the Admirals cell. She picked up the little tray and took it back to her pitiful excuse for a bed, placing it on her lap, half of porridge had tipped out of the bowl, water had overflowed the top of the mug, soaking the bread roll. She could hear him talking to Paris, though she couldn't make out what was being said. She picked up the spoon, poking the cold thick porridge with it and saved her bread from getting more soggy. She ate what she could, which was not very much, before placing the tray back beside the door then sitting back down, her legs out in front of her. Surely Starfleet would be putting together a rescue mission? But then they'd only been due back to the Icarus today, she sighed, they would have to endure more days like this. How would the Admiral cope under their questioning methods?

She wasn't sure how long it'd been, but again they came for him, after clearing their breakfast trays. She sat huddle in the corner, her hands covering her ears, she couldn't bear to listen to the screams of her mentor. She had to stop this, but how, what could she do? It went silent, panic seared through just like it had done the day before, had they killed him? Had it been too much for him? Tears streamed down her cheeks at her failure to prevent this, at the potential lose of the Admiral. At the sound of the main doors opening she stood, and watched as Paris limped, his nose bloody, escorted by two guards. She grabbed hold of her bars and shouted. "You can't do this to us, it's inhuman!"

In one quick movement, the closest guard lifted his rifle, shoving the butt of it through the bars, making contact with her nose. The unexpected force made Kathryn stumble back, but she righted herself, standing a little straighter, she could feel blood trickling down over her lips.

"Unless you want this to be you, I'd be a quite little Starfleet." He spat at her, the Admiral shook his head slightly, discouraging her from any further outburst, before the Cardassian pushed Paris onto his cell.

His words echoed in Kathryn's ears, all she had to do was speak out, make it clear she wasn't happy with their treatment of Paris and she could take his place. She started pacing when the two guards walked past, she stopped, glaring at them, the one who had hit her with his gun turned to look at her, returning her stare. When they'd left the room Kathryn went to the bars and looked over to Paris' cell, she couldn't see him, assuming that he was more then likely sat down, she couldn't blame him. She'd taken a quick glance at his injuries when the group had stopped outside her cell, both hands were covered in blood, his left eye was bruised and swollen, more bruises covered his face, he no longer wore both jackets, instead wearing just his vest, his arms were also the same, covered in cuts and bruises.

"Admiral?"

She heard shuffling, then saw his hand grip hold of one of the bars, not far of the floor, at least she knew where he was. "Kathryn what were you thinking? Do you want them to kill you?"

Kathryn swallowed, no she didn't, but she knew she couldn't let them carry on treating the Admiral this way. "How much longer do you think they'll keep doing this? How much longer until your body gives up?"

She heard a chuckle, was this really the time to be laughing? "Kathryn I'm a lot stronger then you think. I was only limping as I tripped over some steps on the way back here."

Kathryn could feel a laugh bubble up inside her, she couldn't help but smile. "I promise not to tell anyone." She heard him chuckle again, but her mood turned sour at her next question. "What do they do? In that room, when you scream?"

He didn't answer straight away, there was a slight tension building up, making Kathryn feel uncomfortable. "They beat you, they've pulled out a couple of finger nails. And guessing your next question, they want to know why we were in their part of space."

Kathryn frowned, if that were true then the amount of screaming she heard he'd have all his finger nails ripped out, and possibly toe nails. She wasn't going to question it, he was trying to protect her. "But we weren't in Cardassian territory."

She could hear the shrug in his voice. "That's what I've told him. Kathryn remember what I said on the shuttle, don't be unnecessarily heroic. There's plenty of fight left me yet."

Kathryn pursed her lips, gripping tight on the bars she rested her head against them, there was no way she could let this torture continue, regardless of what the Admiral said. "I'll be damn if I'm going to let these barbarians inflict more pain on you!" She shouted, anger bubbled up inside her, she hated being helpless. When she didn't get an answer, she glanced over to see his hand had gone slack, her chest tightened, she hoped that he'd fallen asleep, that his ordeal had spent him. She shook the bars, letting out a frustrated cry, before sinking to the ground. Maybe he was right, maybe she should be quite and save herself, but that wasn't how she was brought up, that wasn't who she was. She was Kathryn Janeway, daughter of an Admiral, a Starfleet Ensign, she was going to do whatever it took to save herself and Admiral Paris. She would get them out of here alive.


	2. Chapter 2

Kathryn woke sometime later to the sound of shouting, and bars being hit. A quick peek out the window told her it was dusk, she'd fallen asleep, not even waking to then dropping a tray into her cell.

"Get up old man."

It was him, the one who'd hit her with his gun, she stood, going to the bars to find him standing at the Admirals cell, kicking it. She glanced down at the tray, some sort of meat and mushy veg was on a plate, she picked it up, this would be her chance. Hearing the door unlock, sounds of someone being pushed, the two guards started walking the Admiral toward her, she kept her eyes locked on the Cardassian, staring him down; it was enough to make him stop in front of her.

"Can I help you, little Starfleet?"

Without a word Kathryn threw the plate at him, meat and vegetable ran down his thick leather jacket, the plate shattering on the floor. There was a moment of stunned silence, before his glare finally met her. "You're going to pay for that, little Starfleet." He growled at her, spitting the last two words out. "Take him back to his cell." He commanded the other guard, who obeyed, despite vocal protests from Admiral Paris. She stood straight, as he unlocked the door, pushing it open and stepping towards her, he grabbed her arm, dragging her out of the cell, she didn't resist. The other guard now joined them, Kathryn had never realised how tall they were until now, having them both stand a head higher then her but she wasn't going to let them make her feel small. Sensing no fight from her, the second guard walked behind them, they took her passed the Admirals cell, the floor cold on her bare feet, she didn't know there was a way out this way, they'd always passed her cell. Admiral Paris called out to them, begging them to let her go and take him. That's why they did it, so the other person could feel helpless, see the results of their friend being dragged off, they'd been taught in their Academy lesson that Cardassians used torture, she didn't think they'd bother with something so small. As they left the cell block, they walked down a corridor, she looked around, taking in the surroundings as best she could; more corridors, doors, control panels. At the end of the corridor was another door, they entered into a somewhat grand chamber with low vaulted ceilings and ornate designs on the wall. A table and chair were its only furnishings, another door was to the left. A Cardassian sat in one of the chairs, the second guard left, but the one holding her stayed, after pushing her forward.

"I've heard much about you, Glinn Damor tells me you're a feisty thing."

Kathryn cast a sideways glance to the Cardassian standing to the side, after all this time she now knew his name. She wasn't sure what a Glinn was, she guessed it maybe their version of a second in command. She stared back at the man sitting in front of her, he looked like every Cardassian she'd seen so far, nothing special.

"I am Gul Camet. What is your name?"

Kathryn stood straight, making sure her voice was clear she said. "My name is Kathryn Janeway. I'm a Starfleet Ensign and a member of the United Federation of Planets."

He seemed to smirk at her words, as though they meant nothing. "Our species haven't had much interaction. I wish this one hadn't been so unpleasant for you and your campion. Why were you on one of our moons?"

There wasn't any hesitation in his voice, he got straight to the point. "I wasn't aware it was yours. In fact I'm sure it's in Federation territory."

"Was in Federation territory. We have annexed it." He stated, there was no sign of any emotion in his voice at his words.

Kathryn was baffled, as far as she was concerned they were doing routine scans on a moon belonging to the Federation, surely there wasn't more to it? "I'm not sure I understand how you can annex what is not yours." She kept calm, getting angry wouldn't help her situation.

"It's quite simple. You take it." His eyes weren't so dead like his tone now, she noted, and had become lidded, like a snake's. "Now once more - what were you doing there?"

She stood as straight as she could, raising her chin slightly, as she had done when first saying these words. "My name is Kathryn Janeway. I'm a Starfleet Ensign and a member of the United Federation of Planets."

Camet was waving off her words with a gesture of disdain and tedium. "Please, my dear, don't posture with me. If I choose, you will tell me anything I ask, you will betray your mother, your father, your friends, and beg to betray others if I will just stop hurting you. That would be just before you went insane." He eyed her briefly to see how she responded to this statement, Kathryn did her best to remain neutral, but couldn't help swallowing the lump in her throat, this is what they'd been doing to the Admiral. "But I don't want to do that." He continued, Kathryn almost snorted at his words. "You're quite young, quite lovely." There was a noise of agreement from Damor, sending a cold shiver down her spin, she'd almost forgot his eyes were on her. "And you seem intelligent, even if a little full of yourself. So I hope you'll see the wisdom of cooperation. After all, if you had a legitimate purpose on the moon, I have no quarrel with you. I understand that the Federation was unaware of our recent annexation."

Kathryn considered his statement, had he recited all this to the Admiral on their first day? Had Paris not given him the answers he wanted and been uncooperative? It sounded utterly reasonable - a tactic, she knew, of a skilled interrogator. On the other hand, she knew her heroic stand was, as he said, impossible to maintain, and she remembered the Admiral's admonition as they were captured. Best to keep this Gul talking.

"We are on a scientific expedition, studying massive compact halo objects. We established a sensor array on that moon two months ago and we were returning to collect data."

"Ah. A mission of scientific endeavour."

"Exactly." She nodded slightly, it was the truth, he had to believe it, surely it would have been what the Admiral told him.

"In that case, Ensign Kathryn Janeway of the United Federation of Planets, why were there extremely sophisticated surveillance devices installed in that array?"

Kathryn wished that she knew nothing about the other mission of the Icarus, so that her innocence would be real, not feigned. The Starship had also been gathering information, about the Cardassians, uploading intelligence about their troop movements, weapon depots, fleet sizes, and other data necessary to insure the defence of the Federation. Her first venture into deep space wasn't an innocuous assignment to gather scientific data - it was an urgent military operation, crucial and dangerous. "There weren't. You must be mistaking elements of our sensors."

"I most certainly am not. And it leads me to believe that this 'scientific' expedition of yours is really a military operation for gathering intelligence."

"Forgive me, Gul Camet, but your statement has a touch of paranoia to it." How long could she keep this up, he already suspected more to her story.

He smiled, but it was without mirth. "You may be right. We are a society which has always distrusted outsiders. Unfortunately, that has always proven a necessity." He gestured towards Damor, who'd remained silent throughout their exchange. "Please show the ensign one of our implants."

He reached into a pocket on his jacket and lifted out a round, flat device that was smaller than a communicator and constructed of what looked like a skinlike polymer. Gul Camet took it and held it out, inspecting it. "It's a remarkable device. Implanted anywhere in your body, it can receive commands from me which produce a level of pain which can only be called astonishing."

Kathryn slowed her breathing, trying not to show her fear. Had the Admiral known about this, did they already implant one in him? Is this why he didn't want her to save him? "How foolish," she said. "You must realise that one will say anything under torture. It's a ridiculous method of getting information."

"Of course it is. That is not the purpose of our techniques."

"What is the purpose?"

"Power. Control. The satisfaction of completely breaking the will of another being."

Kathryn felt an icy chill. She knew he was telling the truth, that once he began to inflict pain there would be no stopping it, there would be no confession, no outpouring of information that would make him stop. She was doomed. They were both doomed.

"I regret that you have chosen to be so uncooperative. I would have preferred to treat you as one of our guest, with comfortable quarters and abundant food." He shrugged, a delicate gesture that bespoke genuine disappointment. "But as it is..."

Damor stepped forward, the doors opened and the second guard entered, Gal Camet nodded toward her and they took her by both arms, hurrying her toward the door so quickly she was trotting to keep from stumbling.

Down the long corridor they ran, Kathryn struggling to keep her footing, but inevitably losing it and falling to her knees, at which point one of the guards kicked her savagely in the thigh, a sharp, painful blow that made her cry out involuntarily. She scrambled to her feet as quickly as she could and they resumed their headlong race, getting to the room that held her cell. They raced passed the Admiral, throwing open her door, they flung her to the ground, the second guard driving his fist viciously into a wound on her forehead that almost finished healing. It spurted blood which ran into her eye, blinding her on one side. When the door was slammed behind her, the closed, damp space was a welcome haven from the guards' cruelty. But she knew that sanctuary would be fleeting.

It was several minutes before the admiral spoke to her, asking how she was, she'd replied telling him she was fine, that she told them they were on a scientific expedition and nothing more. Then they fell into a comfortable silence, which she spent thinking about home, what where are family doing, did they know yet that she was missing? Had the Icarus left them to find help, or was it still in the area trying to put together their own rescue mission? Or had they left them for dead?

Her head throbbed, the bleeding had since stopped, she gently rubbed her temple hoping to ease the pain. It wasn't long before the door opened again, they were coming for her, her cell door opened, she backed away, terrified, into the corner, they hadn't given her any time to mentally prepare for this. Damors hands grabbed her arms and heaved her onto her feet, she protested, struggling against him, wishing she was anyway but here. He shoved her out, into the arms of another waiting guard, the admiral was stood at his bars. "What are are you doing?" He shouted. "Where are you taking her?" As they dragged her out, her fighting and kicking, the last thing she heard was him calling her name.


	3. Chapter 3

His fist landed in her ribs, in the same place it had done just seconds before, pain exploded through her as a bone broke.

They'd stripped her off her jacket and long sleeve top, leaving her in her grey tank top and black trousers, a small part of her was grateful they'd stopped there. But that didn't last long, they chained up her wrists, suspending her from the ceiling, her feet barely touching the cold metal floor.

"Why were you on our moon?" Gul Camet asked again. It was the same questions in... However long it'd been, couldn't have been longer then 10 minutes Kathryn decided. Why were they there, what was the technology they'd been using, over and over, and every time Damor had punched her, Gul Camet being displeased with her answers.

"We were on a scientific mission." She answered once again.

Gul Camot sighed, and nodded to Damor, who proceed to once more ram his fist into her rib, making her cry out. Gul Camet started pacing, like he was thinking, when he stopped and faced her. "What is your name?"

Kathryn stunned into a moment silence, this was a different line of questioning. "My name is Kathryn Janeway."

"No."

Damor landed his fist into her face, she held back her cry, not wanting the Admiral to hear from his cell, hoping that if her captors weren't getting anything out of it they might end their torment sooner. She could feel the cuffs digging at her skin, with every moment they hurt more.

"Who do you work for?"

"United Federation of Planets."

Gul Camet shook his head, Damor spilt her lip.

"Release her, put her in the seat."

Her arms were lowered, Damor released the clasps around her wrists, she glanced around, finding a wooden chair in the corner, clasps on the arm rests. She had no time to try and run, or even rub her sore wrists when she was pushed into the chair, once again bound at her wrists, her hands hanging over the edge. "You can't this this! I haven't done anything wrong!" She shouted, upon seeing what looked like doctor instruments laid out on a table.

Gul Camet laughed. "My dear, you are in no position to tell me what I can and can not do." He paced a bit before coming to a stop, facing her. "What is your name?"

Damor picked up a pair of pliers, watching her, Kathryn felt like her heart was going to explode from her chest, her throat was dry. "My name is Kathryn Janeway."

He fixed them on to one of nails on her left hand when Gul Camet said. "Wait." And started pacing again.

Kathryn followed him, was this a game, scaring her so she'd say what they wanted to hear even though she didn't know what they wanted her to say. A scream from outside the room broke her focus, she turned her head toward the door, where they doing the same to the Admiral? In her distraction, Damor clamped down the pilers, ripping her nail from its bed, she screamed as the pain rushed through her hand, blood seeped through the wound. There was a snicker from Damor, as she caught her breath, calming herself down, her finger throbbing as the blood pooled at the tip, before dripping onto the floor. "What are you doing to the Admiral?"

Gul Camet stopped and faced her, a twisted smile crossed his face. "I didn't hear anything my dear. Maybe you're not so tough as you think, maybe your mind is starting to break already."

"You heard it." She snarled at him, of course she couldn't prove it, but she refused to believe her mind had been broken this early, after one day at his hands, no, this was another tactic of his.

"Take her back to her cell. I think she needs time to get her head together, before I see her again."

Damor and another guard unstrapped her, lifting her to her feet, tightly holding onto her arms, they once again half dragged her through the corridor, again shoving her through her cell door so she landed heavily on the cold ground.

Kathryn landed face down, pain searing through her side from her broken rib, various wounds oozing blood, her hand covered in the stuff. They hadn't taken her pass the Admirals cell, she had no idea if he was in there, or if he was still being tortured, would her defying them make it worse on him. Holding her side, she sat up, leaning against the wall, spitting out the blood that had formed in her mouth.

"Kathryn?"

Hope surged through her at the sound of the Admirals voice. "Admiral, you're here."

"I'm not going anywhere just yet." He tried a joke, it didn't work. "What happened?"

Kathryn's mind couldn't focus on her answer, if he was here, then who did she hear? "Nothing, I'm fine, they just questioned me. Was you here the whole time?"

"Yes. What actually happened, Kathryn? I know they caused you pain, you screamed."

Kathryn felt somewhat embarrassed at the thought of her mentor hearing her in such a state. "No more than they did to you." She sighed, there was a moments silence, when she said. "I heard a scream, a males voice, I thought they had you again."

"Kathryn, I've been sat here the whole time. Maybe they have other prisoners." She nodded, he wouldn't lie to her, she wanted to believe he would tell her if they'd taken him again. "Try and get some sleep." He said. "It must be dark out, and you need to rest."

She glanced at the little window, it was pitch black outside, a cool breeze filled her cell. Carefully she laid herself down on the filthy blanket, fighting back tears that threatened to spill, she had to think of an escape plan, she hoped next time she'd be able to get a better look of the corridors and there surroundings, try and find something to help them. It wasn't long until she fell into a restless sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

The ice cold water hit her like an thousand needles, startling from her sleep, she sat up with a gasp, to find a smirking Damor holding a empty bucket. "Get up, little Starfleet." He stepped back out the cell, locking the door, before walking away. Was it morning already? She felt like she hardly slept, she glanced over the window, only to find she could no longer see outside it, it had been blocked up from the other side. No, no, no. She crawled over to it, hissing as the stiffness side loosened, she put her hand through the bars, trying to push whatever was covering the window, but it was no use, whatever was there wasn't budging. She lent back against the wall, noting the tray with breakfast left by the door, her finger throbbed, her face ached, all the blood was now dried. She wasn't sure if she was hungry, she didn't even know if it was morning time, the cold from the water started to set in, she picked up her damp blanket and wrapped it around her, shuffling towards the tray. Maybe having a bite wouldn't hurt, maybe going back to sleep wouldn't hurt...

The pain screamed through her side, as a voice broke through her haze. "I told you to wake up!" She'd fallen asleep, laying in the dirt with her blanket on top of her. His boot made contact with her side again, she let out a cry, as she slowly sat up, clutching her ribs, rubbing her face, unknowingly smearing dirt over it.

"I'm tired."

Damor bent down a grabbed a fist full of her hair, jerking her head back to look at him. "And I'm in charge here. When I tell you to do something, you do it." He sneered at her, before looking back at her untouched tray and picking up the porridge, he tipped it down her vest, emptying it all. "Oh dear, you seem to have spilt your breakfast, now you'll have to just go without." Releasing her, he threw the small pot down beside her, once again stepping out the cell and locking the door. "I'd stay awake this time if I were you, little Starfleet."

When he was out of eye sight, heading towards the Admiral, Kathryn slowly lifted her tank top, her side was bruised, whatever damage he done would take several weeks to heal. She could hear him muttering, saying something she could only guess sounded like his men would never act 'that way' and that the Admiral should learn to control her. Kathryn scoffed at his words, how else did he expect her to behave, being held prisoner, being tortured. She scooped what little porridge she could off her top, eating it regardless of what dirt had come of with it, then eating the bread roll and drinking the water. Peering out the bars, she could see Damor had left. "Admiral?"

"Kathryn, are you alright?" She could just see his face through the bars on his cell. The bruises on his face weren't as bad, clearly what she'd set out to do had work, but now she wasn't sure much more pain she could take.

"Fine, sir, just a bit bruised. I'll live." She managed a smile, but it soon faded with his gaze on her; he didn't believe her.

"Kathryn, what are you trying to do? Do you want to get yourself killed?" His voice though gentle clearly showed his disappointed. "I told you to keep low, to let me handle it."

Kathryn tried not to sob, the early shaking cashing her side more pain, at her failure in his eyes. "I couldn't let them treat you like that."

"And you think I want to sit hear, listening to your screams, not knowing if they'll be bringing back a broken body?" It was almost a shout, a passionate raise of his voice, not just in anger, but in his own sacredness.

"I'm sorry." She couldn't help it, the tears flowed freely, not matter how hard she willed them not too. She tried to control her breathing, tried to steady her body, how did she end up here. Suddenly everything stopped, the tears, the jerking. How did she end up here. "Admiral, why did you pick me for this mission?"

"I thought you would learn the most from it, you were suitable for it."

Kathryn shook her head, regardless if Paris could see or not. "There were others on the ship, far more capable then me. Like the special task force, you could have taken one of them! Not an ensign, so close to Cardassian territory!" She was shouting, her anger bubbling through, she could have been safe on the ship - not that she'd wish anyone going through this, but someone trained could have handled it better. Like someone from the special task force he'd mentioned before leaving.

"Kathryn..." Whatever he was going to say got cut off by the door opening, Damor walking over to her.

"Nice to see you're still up, little Starfleet."

"Fuck off." She spat at him, when he started unlocking her cell door she tried to bury herself in the corner, but the pain in her ribs made it near impossible.

"You are coming with me, teach you some respect." He grabbed her hair, dragging her to stand, making her cry out, and bringing out a deep laugh from him. "Oh I'm sorry, did I hurt you." Sarcasm drooled from him.

Kathryn shot him what her friends had called her 'death glare' but refused to say anything.

He dragged her backwards out of the cell, making her stumble slightly as her toes caught against the ground, her hands frantically trying to claw at his to release his grip.

"Let her go!" Paris demanded from his prison, she could just see his face and fists wrapped around the bats.

"Shut up old man, when she breaks it'll be your turn."

"You'll never break me." Kathryn growled at Damor, making him laugh.

He turned around, getting his face in hers, running a finger down her cheek. "I will, and I'll enjoy every second of it."

Panic started rising, fighting Kathryn's chest, her breathing sharpened, she feared them breaking her, more than she feared death, but she would fight them, she wouldn't make it easy for them. "Give it your best."

Laughing again, Damor pulled her out of the holding room, not giving her any time to find her footing that she was practically being dragged by her hair, her legs scrambling about.

When they reached the Guls room and twisted her around to stand in front of him, shoving her hard in the back, she managed not to fall on to her knees. She rest her hand on her side, trying to settle the burning pain from her broken ribs.

Gul Camet stood in front of her, hands behind his back. "What was you business in our area?"

Kathryn stood, straighten out her filthy clothes, looking around, Damor stood by the door. "I've told you. And I don't know what trick you're playing this time but it won't work." Why weren't they hurting her, she had a bad feeling they were saving her for something terrible.

The Gul nodded. "You keep telling me you know nothing, but I don't believe you." He stepped closer to her, towering over her. "What's your name?"

"Kathryn Janeway." She had no idea what his obsession with her name was, but she wasn't going to break.

As if he sensed her thoughts, Gul Camet smiled, it was twisted, it was evil, he leant so his mouth was inches from her ear. "I'll break you soon enough and when I do, you'll wish I had killed you sooner."

Kathryn felt chills go down her back, though she maintained her composure, looking ahead and not at him.

Camet laughed, stepping back from her. "Damor, show her to one of our... special rooms, for difficult guests, maybe that'll loosen her tongue."

Damon grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the room, but this time they didn't head back to the cells, he pulled her down a different corridor, door lined either side of it, a guard stood holding one of the open, it was here he dropped her off; shoving her inside, the door slamming shut. Steadying herself, Kathryn turned around to the door, kicking it in anger, then she studied her new surroundings; four grey walls, and a flickering light.

There was a sliding sound, turning back to the door, a small part of it had been pulled back so she could see Damor eyes. "If you thought it had been bad so far, you've not seen nothing, Little Starfleet." The opening closed, and she was once again left alone.

Kathryn sank to the floor, letting out the tears she'd been holding back, the same question running through her head again; how did this happen?


	5. Chapter 5

Enjoy!

=/\=

"We're approaching the upper atmosphere of the moon, sir." She said, reading from her instruments. "Preparing for landing sequence." Then she gasped as she saw something else on the sensors and heard the admiral grunt as he noticed the same thing.

"There's a ship behind the limb of the moon," she said automatically, knowing he was well aware of it. He was already keying controls, swinging the shuttle in an arc to return to the Icarus. "I don't recognise the signature," she began, but he interrupted brusquely.

"That's a Cardassian ship, Ensign."

A cold knot formed in her stomach. This wasn't Cardassian territory. What was it doing here? "Should I alert the ship?"

"Maintain communications silence. It's possible they're unaware of the Icarus. I'd like to keep it that way."

Kathryn was aware that he was running a fairly complicated series of evasive manoeuvres. What was he anticipating? She willed herself to remain calm, and focused on the sensors, which showed that a massive ship was rounding the limb of the moon. In seconds it would be within eyesight.

The shuttle was dancing in space, manoeuvring gracefully but unpredictably, when the Cardassian ship appeared. It was huge, roughly arrow-shaped, with a variety of weapons systems prominently displayed along its hull. Kathryn felt her heart hammering, but her mind was focused and her hands in the controls were steady. But she had to ask. "Why are we really out here, sir?" She turned to him, trying not to let the fear she felt show on her face.

The admiral swallowed, if anyone else had been there she wouldn't have asked, if anyone else had been there he wouldn't have answered so freely. "It's best that you don't know, for your own safety."

"You knew they were here?" She was shocked, why would he bring her out to Cardassian space.

Suddenly a deep violet tractoring beam emanated from the Cardassian ship, and Kathryn realised the admiral had been anticipating this; his manoeuvres were an effort to keep them from locking on. He glanced over at her, and he grave eyes were worried. "This may get unpleasant for us, Ensign," he said. "Do your best, but don't be unnecessarily heroic." She didn't know what he meant.

For a few minutes he was able to avoid the tractor, it as they both knew, it was only a delaying tactic. Eventually the larger ship with its fat tractor beam would ensnare them - and that's exactly what happened, with a bone-jarring snap that tossed them around like toys. Kathryn's head bounced off the console, lights flared in her head, a brief but brilliant display that she barely registered before everything went black.

=/\=

The pain felt like that off a thousand needles, piercing her skin all at the same time. What was happening, she'd just fallen asleep... wet, she felt wet. Kathryn startled awake, ice cold water was pouring in from the ceiling, filling her cell, running down her face. She spluttered, getting her bearings as she stood, water now up to her calves, she banged against the door.

"Let me out!" Water ran down her eyes, obscuring her vision, sticking her clothes and hair to her. She couldn't believe after all this they were going to drown, no this had to be another trick.

The water now seeped over the top of her trousers, she banged again on the door, but still got no answer. There was nowhere to hide, she waded to one of the walls and smacked her fist against, in a futile hope that it may help her; nothing happened.

She shivered as the water crept over her shoulders, her hands and feet were starting to go numb, fear slowly took hold, this wasn't how she wanted it to end, this couldn't be how she died. Alone. At the hands of other people.

Before the water engulfed her face, she took a deep breath.

Would her family know, did they already think she was dead? What would happen to her body? She feel panic rising up in her chest, she had to breathe, she had to live.

Suddenly the water started going down, as soon as there was an air gap, Kathryn exhaled, relieved at being able to get air again, though it did nothing to settle her racing heart. Slowly the water disappeared into a gap in the floor, after it had all drained away, the tile clicked back into place and the hatch in the ceiling closed.

Kathryn stood, trembling, wondering what would happen next. Was that just start of something bigger? How many times would she have to go through that.

She heard the door unlocking, her heart pounded harder, were they coming to recover her body? What would happen if they saw her still alive.

When the door opened, Damor stood on the other side, after a moment of looking at her, he began to laugh. "Don't look so worried, we weren't trying to kill you." Then turning serious he added. "That time." He grabbed hold of her arm. "The Gul wants to see you."

"I'm wet." She stated, though wasn't sure why, he could clearly see she was soaked, and doubt that pointing it out would make any difference. Her feet squished in her boots, her tank top clung to her shrinking torso, her plait was now a damp mattered mess.

Damon laughed again as he pulled her out of the room. "I'm sure that'll be taken care of."

Kathryn froze momentarily in horror, multiple scenarios running through her head, she wished none of them would come true. Damon tightened his grip and dragged her back to the Guls room, placing her in the middle of it. Kathryn wrapped her arms around herself, a feeble attempt to keep herself warm as she stood, shaking and dripping.

"I see my men have given you a wash." Gul Camet commented, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"They tried to drown me." She informed him, though given his comment she suspected he already knew.

"I'm sure they didn't mean to." He took a sip of water from a glass on the table, eyeing her. "Lets see if we can get you dry." Holding the glass, he nodded towards her.

Without warning, Damor grabbed her tank top, pulling at it, Kathryn fought back, trying to push him away, but her top gave out and ripped. Damor discarded it on the floor, as Kathryn quickly covered her breasts.

The his hands were on her trousers, yanking on them, his strength was more then hers, and despite being a somewhat robust material, the garment tore and joined her top. She could feel tears starting to form, but she blinked them back, she wouldn't let them see her humiliated.

"That's enough." Gul Camet said, before Damor could touch her knickers. "Though there is one thing we could remove."

Kathryn tensed up, if they thought they would strip her they thought wrong, she would fight to keep a little bit of dignity. But to her surprise, her hair started getting tugged at, pulling at her head, then she realised what they doing. It didn't take long for Damor to be stood in front of her, holding her plait.

"Now you don't have wet hair, running down your bare back. That should help." The Gul said, as though he'd just done her a favour.

Without thinking, Kathryn lashed out at Damor, punching him as hard as she could, not caring if they could see her exposed body.

"You bastard! All of you!" She shouted, her fists pounding against his heavy vest.

"Enough!" Gul Camets voice boomed as his fist landed on the table.

Pain took hold of Kathryn, her arms went rigid at her sides, her legs gave out and she crashed to the floor; she felt like she was being electrocuted. The pain burned through her legs, through her arms, meeting in her chest, she screamed, she had no control over her body as it involuntary convulsed.

Then it was over, the pain lingered and though the convulsions stopped, she couldn't get control over her body. Gul Camet now stood over her, holding the device he'd shown her when they first met.

"I see by the widening in your eyes you remember what this is." He chunked. "My dear, you had this in you even before that time, I had them implanted in you whilst you were unconscious."

Kathryn tried to ask why wait this long to use it, why all the games, but her words come out incoherent.

He bent down to her, almost reading her thoughts. "Because it's just too much fun." He stood back up, looking at her. "What is your name?"

She couldn't answer, she couldn't form a word, he knew that, her head was garbled, she was sure shock was setting in. All she could do was let out a grunt when his foot made contact with her side.

"One day you will learn who you are." He walked back to the table, after taking her hair from Damor. "Take her back to her cell."

"With pleasure." Damor snarled, as he lifted her to her feet, drapping one arm across his shoulders, holding onto her waist.

She felt like a puppet, one arm hung limp beside, she could barely get her feet to do what she wanted.

When they got to the hallway of cells, Damor didn't open hers, instead he opened the door opposite and pushed her inside, walking in after. Kathryn caught herself against the wall, using it to steady herself, having a quick glance around; it was a storage room, shelving piled high with what she guessed were clothing and blankets, there was also a desk to the side.

Damor stepped up to her and took a fist of her now short hair and threw her over the desk, she let out a small cry as she landed on the wooden surface. She couldn't fight back as Damor grabbed the side of her knickers and pulled them down to her ankles.

"Don't." She managed to say, her voice raspy from the screaming.

He lent over her, he weight crushing her chest. "You humans think you're better than us. That you're superior to us." He growled in her ear, before standing back up, unfastening his trousers, then spat out. "How superior do you feel now!"

In one movement he forced himself inside her, burning pain seared through her, tears freely flowed down her cheeks. He was bigger than anyone she'd been with, she thought that'd rip her open.

"Stop." She pleaded, the table hurt her ribs as she was pounded into the edge of it.

He grabbed her hair again and smacked her head against the table, his other hand digging into her hip. "Little Starfleet bitch."

He trusted a couple more times, each one harder than the last, before coming to a stop. He pulled up his trousers, Kathryn laid across the table in shock, when he took hold of her arm and pulled her out of the room. Unlocking her cell door he shoved her in, uncaring that her knickers were still around her ankles, that blood was running down her legs or that she tripped over her own feet and fell to the floor.

Kathryn laid curled up on the floor, unaware of how much time had passed, the blood on her legs had now dried and her knickers were no longer soaked. She had stopped shivering, though she wasn't warm she didn't feel cold either, she felt numb. Her thoughts had constantly changed, from her family, to replaying events until she thought of the Admiral. Where was he? Was he in a room like this? Was he even alive?

She heard the clicking of the lock and the door open, but she didn't move, or even turn around, she stared at the wall, waiting for the feel of a boot or a hand in her hair. Instead there was some footsteps, the sound of things being placed on the floor; metal clanging, fabric rustling followed by more footsteps and the locking of the door.

It was a while before she decided to move, her body starting to feel stiff and achey, she sat up, still keeping her legs tucked up against her for cover, no matter how much they hurt. In the middle of the room was a bucket of water, a pile of clothes and a tray of food. She moved uneasily to it, searching through the clothes, a white long sleeved top, matching trousers, a grey blanket and a scrap of fabric she guessed was for washing with. She tested the water with a finger, not just to check the temperature - it was warm - but if anything had been put it in to harm her it would effect her finger and hopefully not the rest of her. After what she considered to be a reasonable amount of time, she peeled off her stained knickers, throwing them into a corner, then proceeded to dunk the square bit of material in to the water. It felt nice to wash her legs, to wipe off the bits of blood that were still sticky, to feel somewhat cleaner. After she'd finished she discarded the cloth with her kickers, then put on the clothes, they hung off her body, the trousers sitting just under her hips. Then she ate the warm soup, a roll, slice of cheese and some ham, with a glass of milk. It was good, maybe not enough to completely fill her empty stomach, it it was better than cold porridge, but she froze in fear at the tray, was this another trap, would they use this as a reason to best her again? At the sound of the lock, she huddled back into the corner, tucking her legs up and wrapping her arms around them.

The door opened and a Cardassian male walked in, one that she hadn't seen before. He looked different from the other guards, he wasn't so tall, not so big built. He looked at her, she forced herself back into the wall, wishing he would get on with it. But to her surprise, he collected the sodden pile, dropping it into the bucket, she watched him, wide eyed, as he moved the blanket closer to her, before picking up the bucket and tray. Casting her one last look he left, locking her inside once more.

Kathryn picked up the blanket, wrapping it around her shoulders, she stretched out her legs, they cramped as she did, so she slowly stood, keeping hold of the blanket, she paced the little room, every now and then bending the legs, trying to loosed them up. Until tiredness started to set in, she sat back down with her legs out in front of her and closed her eyes.


	6. Chapter 6

Short chapter this time.

=/\=

"Wake up little Starfleet." Damors voice broke through, waking her. She immediately felt angry, why couldn't they let her just get a few hours of decent sleep. He took hold of her arm, smiling smugly as she flinched, and hoisted her to her feet, walking her out of the room, back towards Gul Camets room, she noticed a console being built beside one of the walls that lead to his office doors.

Once again she stood in the middle, but this time Damor placed thick cuffs around her wrists as Gul Camet walked up to her.

"Are you going to start telling me the truth?"

"I've been telling the truth." She replied, then asked. "Where is the Admiral?"

"You need not worry about him." The Gul brushed off, then nodded at Damor who pulled her arms above her head, clipping them to a pole suspended from the ceiling.

"What is that suppose to mean? What have you done to him?" She demanded, her concern for the older man outweighing her care for whatever they were about to subject her to.

Gul Camet avoided her questions. "You can spend the night here."

Damor left the room, dimming the lights as he went, Gul Camet stood closer to her, she could feel his breath on her face. "Nobody will be looking for you. Nobody will be missing you. Nobody is coming." With that he also exited the room.

Kathryn dozed as best she could, her arms pulling, but she was grateful they had left her feet on the floor; it could have been worse. The cuffs dug at her wrists, but not enough to make them start bleeding.

She looked around, not having time to take in her surroundings, not ever really getting a chance to despite how many times she'd set foot in here. Grey panel walls, cold metal floor with matching table and a uncomfortably looking chair, it was void of any decorations, and personal objects, it was a cold room, meant to be intimidating, almost like the person it belong to.

She heard the door open behind her, within seconds the young Cardassian was stood in front of her, holding a glass of water.

"Drink." He held the glass towards her, waiting for her to accept but she didn't. Instead Kathryn stared at it, wondering if he was attempting to poison her. Sensing her hesitation, he took a sip of it, then offered it again, when she nodded he put the glass to her lips. The cold liquid felt good, she guessed she'd been here several hours if her mouth and throat felt dry. When she'd finished he took the cup away, looked at her for a moment then quickly left without saying anything else.

"Morning time!" The sound of Gul Camets voice startled her, the harsh brightness of the lights hurting her eyes, she squinted several times, letting them adjust. The Gul stood in front of her, looking her up and down. "Well don't you look a mess."

Kathryn glared at him, her jaw set tight, she could see Damor out of the corner of her eye.

"You are a stubborn creature." Gul Camet laughed, then leaned into her ear. "Nobody will find you. Nobody is going to miss you." Without warning his punched her in the stomach.

Kathryn let out a cry, the cuffs tugging at her painful wrists, she could feel blood slowly running down her skin. Before that pain had subsided, a new pain seared through her body, the same that had left her limp on the floor, it shot through her legs, up her body to the tips of her fingers. Then it stopped, her legs gave out, a burning tingly feeling lingered, her head rested against her arm.

"Look Damor, she's pissed herself." Gul Camet laughed.

Kathryn hadn't realised, but now she feel dampness in her trousers and a puddle of warm liquid around her feet. She couldn't stop the tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Now, as you refuse to tell me why you were in Cardassian space and who you are, we're going to have to teach you a lesson."

In her haze, she could could see Damor place a small table beside his senior officer, on top of it was a metal tray with various instruments laid out. He picked up a knife, spinning it around in his fingers.

Kathryn tried to find the strength to stand, but she couldn't, lack of food, sleep and the pain from the device made it difficult to do anything, her arms pulled that she thought they would pop out of their sockets.

Damor stood in front of her, placing the tip of the knife against her cheek.

"Who are you?" Gul Camet asked.

"Kathryn." She managed to whisper, barely reacting as the blade slid across her skin.

Without warning, Gul Camet pushed Damor out of the way and had her throat in his hand, forcing her head up. "You just don't get it, Nobody. Stop fighting to be someone!"

"Won't break me." She spat back, his words slowing sinking in, that's what this was about, her being nobody, her being broken.

"You foolish girl." He released her and stepped back. "Continue." He instructed Damor, who advanced towards her, slashing the blade across her side.


	7. Chapter 7

Time was passing, Kathryn was unsure of how much time, cuts and bruises were healing, though new ones would take their place, scars were beginning to form, her hair had grown a couple of inches, but in all that time she had not seen the Admiral, hearing the occasional scream, but she couldn't be sure that was him and not another prisoner. Any thoughts of being rescued were slowly fading.

She was still locked in her metal wall room, they'd only filled it up with water twice, the second time she'd almost drowned, waking to find the young Cardassian pushing down on her chest until she coughed up water. He still visited her, not saying anything, just giving her clean clothes, better meals, water to wash herself with.

After her near death at their hands they'd taken it upon themselves to try and dry drown her, placing a cloth over her face and pouring water over her, letting her cough it up, then repeating, at least this way they knew they wouldn't kill her as they had control.

She sat, leaning against the wall, staring at the other blank wall opposite as she had been doing for the past... she wasn't sure. Damor continued to rape her, but the tears had stopped long ago, now she laid there feeling numb. How she was feeling now.

The door clicked unlocked and swung open, Damor stood in the doorway. "Get up." He ordered, she ignored him, continuing to stare at the wall. He stepped closer and knelt down. "Get up, little nobody."

She cast him a sideways glance at the use of his new nickname for her, but did nothing.

Damor stood, then unexpectedly grabbed a handful of her hair and smashed the side of her head against the wall, before forcing her to her feet, letting go he smiled. "Wasn't that bad was it!"

Kathryn put a hand to her throbbing temple and glare at him.

"You just don't learn." He snarled at her. "Thinking you can look at me like that." He took a fistful of hair again and dragged her out of the room, telling her how sorry she was going to be.

They go to the end of corridor when another Cardassian appeared. "Can I speak to you?"

"I'm in the middle of something, is it important?"

Kathryn, from her half bent over position, noticed the console had been completed, this could be it, a chance to find an escape route. Her thoughts were broken when Damor pulled her up straight and let go of her.

"Stay here." He growled at her, then whispered into her ear. "Touch anything, I'll know about it, I'm always watching you."

He and the other Cardassian disappeared into a room just behind the console, Kathryn froze for a moment, what if this was a trap. She looked down at the console, its lights shining brightly at her, it was worth the risk, if she could get an SOS message out, or a layout of the building - or even find Owen.

She shuffled quietly closer, keeping her left side towards it so she could face the door, glancing down she realised she had a problem, she didn't understand Cardassian. She pursed her lips but tapped a couple of buttons anyway. Words flashed up on the screen, she didn't understand them, before disappearing, she pressed a few more buttons, hoping to find something useful.

There was a whirling noise, then the console switched itself off.

"Oh." She said, disappointed.

Then there was an explosion, the console erupted into flames, throwing her across the hallway...

The pain.

Burning pain.

There was shouting, a mans voice.

But there was also screaming.

A woman screaming.

The pain.

Heat.

Then darkness...

Kathryn woke with a groan, and slowly opened her eyes but found to her horror only her right eye opened, something was on her face, keeping her left eye closed. She could feel it all over her left side, weighing down her arm and leg, pressing down on her chest. She tried to move her right arm, it was in a sling and painful. Her throats felt dry, but the pain had eased, even if her body felt stiff. She looked around as best she could, but could only see a grey ceiling, she guessed this was the medical centre.

At the sound of the door opening she closed her eye, footsteps got closer.

"Doctor! How is she?" It was Gul Camets voice.

There were more footsteps then the sound of the younger Cardassian. "Better, more stabilised then she was yesterday. She'll still need rest though, all the skin grafts seem to have taken, but she'll be scared for life."

Yesterday? How long had she been unconscious for?

"As soon as she's better I want her back in her cell." Gul Camets voice was full of anger, he spat the sentence out.

"Sir, her body has gone through a traumatic event, it'll be a while before she goes anywhere." She could hear the concern in the doctors voice.

"As soon as she's well enough, or I throw her back into that pit right now. Do I make myself clear."

"Yes sir."

She could hear footsteps starting to move away when the doctor said. "There is one more thing." There was a pause, she guessed it was the Gul turning back to face the younger man. "She was 8 weeks pregnant. The baby didn't survive."

She heard a slight growl, the heavy footsteps, the Gul storming out, the doors whooshed close behind him. A surge of emotions ran through her, she hadn't realised she was pragnant, she assumed that the abuse to her body had stopped her cycles. She wasn't going to cry. She laid still, feeling the presence of the doctor beside her.

"He's gone. You can open your eyes now."

She hesitated a moment, wanting to just pretend she was sleeping, but slowly opened her eye and looked at him. "You knew I was awake?"

He smiled, she hadn't seen a genuine smile on a Cardassian before, one that wasn't menacing or a snarl; it didn't suit him. "I was about to check on you before the Gul come in. The pressure you feel are cooling gel packs, they are helping the skin grafts to take, and ease the pain. I'll be able to take them off within a day or two."

She nodded as best she could. "I was pregnant?"

The doctor took in a deep breath. "Yes, but you miscarried. The Gul will want to know who's it was and how you became to be pregnant. Was it consented?"

Kathryn didn't answer him, her jaw was set and she stared at the ceiling. If Damor hadn't been allowed to rape her she could get him in trouble, maybe even get him removed from this base, but at the same time it could all come back to her. "How long have I been out?"

"About 3 days. I had to keep you sedated because of the pain, our technology isn't as advanced as yours, that includes our medical equipment. You screamed every time I had to wake you. It was best to keep you asleep."

She noted his tone changing, like he was a man forever haunted by her screams of pain, she was glad she didn't remember any of it. "I need a drink." Her voice was now raspy.

He nodded and slowly raised the bed, so she was sitting then left, giving her time to not only look at the room, but at herself. The blue packs covered her bare chest, the thin white blanket was tucked under her arms, covering her breasts, she could just about see burns and marks from the skin grafts poking out, her right arm - she guessed broken at her collarbone - sat limp across her stomach. She glanced around the room just as the doctor returned, it was the same as the rest of the place, grey, cold, there was nothing remotely inviting about it, it looked like a place where people died, it got better.

"Here." He held a straw to her lips, it was only water, but it felt good going down her throat.

"Thank you."

He put the glass down on a side table. "You should rest." She got the feeling he wanted to add more, but didn't. He lowered the bed slightly, she could still look around, but would be more comfy when she slept, then started to head back to his office.

"What's your name?" She asked, stopping him.

"Kovat."

She smiled, as best as her left side would let, though she knew it probably looked very lopsided. "Thank you, Kovat."

Kovat nodded, then left her as she settled down and drifted back to sleep.

"Wake up!"

The demand made her jump out of her sleep and Kathryn slowly opened her eyes to find Gul Camet hovering over her, Damor was standing at the foot of the bed. She yawned as best as the pain in her face would let her and forced her good eye to stay awake, she had no idea how long she'd been asleep but she was still tired.

"I really think this isn't the right time." Said Kovat, who was standing behind Damor.

"Thank you Doctor, but your thoughts don't matter." Stated Damor.

"What were you thinking?" Gul Camet asked her. "Were you hoping to find an escape route? Make it back to your shuttle, or your commander?"

Her thoughts whirled, they still had the shuttle? She thought that it would have been dismantled ages ago.

"I knew you would be tempted, that you'd see the console and find a way to use it." He sounded like he suppressing a laugh. "All the console in the base have a security feature in them; if random buttons are pressed, they're set to self destruct." He let out a laugh as though he'd just told a joke.

Kathryn looked at him in horror, it's been a trap, a well thought, well laid out trap, right from them building it, and she'd walked straight in to it.

"Now, about this baby you'd been carrying. Are you going to tell me whose it was?" He leaned closer to her, studying her reaction - there wasn't one.

She hadn't even had time to process the thought of carrying a baby, let alone losing it. She wasn't sure how she felt about it. She turned her eye to the Gul, though she could see Damor out of the corner, glaring at her. "Fuck you."

Gul Camet rightened himself, then launched the back of his hand across her face, she let out a cry of pain, but was thankful her stinging cheek wasn't the one covered in cooling pads.

"Gul." Kovat stepped forward, but Damor put his arm out, stopping him going any further.

"It's okay, I'm done here. For now." Giving her one final stare, Gul Camet left the room, Damor following behind.

Kathryn relaxed a little, as Kovat came to stand beside her. "I'm sorry. I did tell them to let you sleep longer, you'd only gotten two hours, but they wouldn't listen."

Kathryn smiled weakly. "Of course not."

"We don't have a counsellor here, but if you need to talk, to grieve maybe, then you can always talk to me." He gave her a little smile, before turning and walking over to a monitor.

Kathryn thought about it. She didn't feel the need to grieve, if the baby had lived it probably would have been taken away from her. If she'd had been allowed to keep it, she might have resented it, being angry at it even, with it being a constant reminder. No, she didn't need to grieve it's loss.


	8. Chapter 8

I am working on this, but it's school holidays here and I'm looking after my daughter full time. But I've done some work on it! Writing will probably continue in September when schools go back, enjoy for now.

=/\=

Kathryn now sat back in her original cell, sat on the filthy blanket, staring at the cemented walls. She'd been in the medic bay for three days - she knew that as Kovat had told her - when Damor and two other guards dragged her back here, to the protest of the Doctor. She hadn't seen the Admiral, he wasn't in his cell and it looked like it hadn't been used for a while; there wasn't a blanket, no food remains, no sign of life. Kovat had provided her with another set of clean clothes, white trousers but with a short sleeve top, her gaze fell upon her arm, it was still a hot mess. Kovat had managed to graft skin on her face and neck, but couldn't risk taking to much skin from the unburnt parts of her body; so her arm, torso and leg went untouched. He'd given her some of the cooling gel sheets, telling her to apply them if her skin felt itchy and that he'd check on her and replenish them if need be.

How had she been so stupid? The Admiral wouldn't have been so bold to just use an alien console, he wouldn't have almost gotten himself killed. Tears ran down her cheeks as anger at herself consumed her.

"Little Nobody."

She looked up to see Damor standing outside, holding a tray. "Thought you might like some food." He unlocked and opened the door, dropping the tray to the floor, then stood staring at her. Kathryn braced herself for whatever his next move would be, but to her surprise he stepped out, locked the door and left.

She pulled the tray over to her, there was a glass of water, a bread roll, butter, a knife, what looked like vegetable soup, a spoon... a knife. She picked it up, looking at its sharp blade, as she rotated it around in her fingers. She could hide it, wait for Damor to come back then stab him with it, she could picture it sliding into his neck, his blood gushing out as his life slipped away at her hands.

But where would that leave her? Dead. It would almost certainly leave her dead.

Dead. Maybe being dead wasn't such a bad idea. She had no idea where the Admiral was, if he still alive. She made a promise to herself to get them out of here and she had failed. She put the pointy end of the blade against her wrist, the tears had stopped as numbness settled in place of anger. Everyone had probably written her off as dead, that was why they hadn't come for them.

A laughter broke through her thoughts.

Gul Camet was bent down, outside her cell, she hadn't heard him approach, but there he was, laughing at her. "You know, you remind me of one of those birds you have on your planet, little black and white thing, likes shiny stuff." He paused trying to find its name. "Magpie I believe it's called?"

Kathryn glared at him, momentarily forgetting about the knife in her hand.

"Answer me!" He bellowed, making her jump.

"Yes, Magpie." She whispered.

He nodded. "Apart from, instead of being attracted to shiny objects, you like things that almost get you killed." He shook his head, as though he was disappointed in her. "Silly. Silly girl. Well you did get someone killed, your unborn baby." He motioned to the knife tightly gripped in her hand. "And now you're going to take the easy way out." He stood. "Which means I win. I've broken you and you can't stand to be here, being nobody, with nobody missing you. Nobody thinking about you. Nobody coming for you."

"I'm going to kill you." She snarled at him, her knuckles going white from gripping the handle too hard,

"Ha, ha!" Camet opened the cell door, but stood back, he arms wide open. "Here you are, the doors are opened, I'm here. Give it your best try."

Kathryn watched as anger bubbled up again, it was of course another trap, he knew she wouldn't do it. She let out a cry of frustration before tossing the knife back onto the tray.

Camet smirked. "You just don't have it in you any more." He stepped into the cell and picked up the tray. "I'll be taking this, can't let threats of killing me go unpunished." He stepped back out, locking the door. "Poor little nobody. All alone." With that he left, taking her meal.

Kathryn could feel the tears building up, but blinked them away as she stood up and kicked the wall, again and again, letting out her cries of anger and sadness, pounding her fists until they were sore. Before skinning down to the ground and laying on her blanket.

Kathryn woke to her stomach growling at her, she was starving, Kovat had been kind enough to give her food whilst she was in his care, but with Camet taking away her meal, she hadn't since being back in her cell. She sat up and stretched out her legs, wincing slightly as her dry skin pulled. She heard one of the outer doors and footsteps getting closer, she looked up to find Kovat stopping outside her door. Her mood perked up a little, she dismissed it.

"How are you feeling?" He bent down to her level, before deciding to sit on the metal floor of the walkway.

"Hungry. And my skin feels tight." He stomach rumbled again.

"Here." Kovat opened a small bag that was hanging on his shoulder and started taking out items, passing them through the bars. "I don't have a key." He explained as she took the stuff of him. "The green bottle is lotion, don't use it on your face, but that should help. The small box has gel sheets, you can use those for your face, but I can't give you a mirror to help I'm afraid. The lunch box has food and the flask has water."

Kathryn looked at the items before taking the lid of the lunch box and pulling out a sandwich with some sort of meat inside, she took a massive bite and decided that it was edible. "Why are you helping me?" She asked between mouthfuls.

"Just because I'm Cardassian doesn't mean I condone what they're doing to you. I'm not a barbarian."

Kathryn studied him as she finished the sandwich and took an apple out, he seemed naive, she guessed this was probably his first posting. "Where's Owen? The Admiral."

"I don't know. I haven't seen him, they haven't brought him in for any medical treatment. I will try and find out for you."

Kathryn nodded as she took a bite out of the other side of the apple, before spitting it back out. "It's rotten inside." She eyed at him.

"Sorry, I just grabbed what I could as quickly as I could, I didn't want them to see me."

She put the leftovers back in the lunch box, replacing the lid then picked up the flask, taking a long sip of the fresh water. Then handed him back the lunch box and flask.

"Keep the flask, just hide it somewhere. I'll try and bring you some more food later." He said, returning the lunch box to his bag, then standing.

"Thank you." She said, her stomach feeling grateful for a bit of food.

Kovat nodded, then left, she heard the outer doors whoosh close behind him. She picked up the green bottle and squeezed the contents into her hand and rubbed it into her arm, torso and leg as best she could without wanting to take her clothes off. Then took a couple of gel sheets out, applying them to her face but having no idea if she was covering the right places. But it helped, her skin felt less tight, dry and itchy.

Then she spent the next... however long it was, sitting staring at the wall, getting lost in her thoughts, pacing the small space and occasionally smacking her palms against the bars and shaking the door.

"Get up."

Kathryn slowly opened her eyes, just in time to see the tip of a boot swinging towards her, she had no time to move - nowhere to move to - as it made contact with her side. To her surprise it didn't hurt as much as she thought it would, she took it as a warning, that maybe they were listening to the Doctor, but she knew Damor would do it again, and a lot harder the second time round if she didn't get moving. Without a word she stood, brushing dirt of her clothes.

He took hold of her arm, her good one and gripped it tightly. "Camet wants to see you." He pulled her out of the cell, pushing the door to behind them. Down corridors and through the door door into Gul Camet's grand and cold room. He was stood, waiting for them, Damor came to a haunt a few feet in front of his superior, releasing her, Kathryn resisted the urge to rub her arm.

"That'll be all, Damor." Camet said, dismissing the other man.

"But-." Damor started.

"That will be all." His tone was harsher this time.

Damor glared at her, as though it was her fault, before muttering something - sounding to her like he'll be outside - then leaving.

Camet was silent, staring at her, making her feel uncomfortable, before he finally spoke. "Would you happen to know why my medic is asking me about a dead man?"

"What?" Kathryn replied, confused, before he words slowly sank in. Was the dead man he was referring to the Admiral?

"Do not make me repeat myself."

"I...I don't know what you mean." Her mind was racing with thoughts, what had they done to the Admiral, he couldn't be dead? Had she failed him?

"Your beloved Admiral is dead, Nobody. He betrayed you and everything he stood for, he told us why you were in our territory and thus served his purpose."

Kathryn shook her head, her body shaking as held back sobs. "No. No, no, no. You're lying."

Camet's face remind expressionless. "He is dead, Nobody. That's why you haven't seen him, haven't heard him. And your pathetic crying won't bring him back."

"No!" Kathryn fell to her knees, crying for her lost friend.

Camet laughed a little to himself. "You know, he screamed like a baby during his last days, you should have heard, but you wouldn't of, he was on the other side of the base. Begged us not to kill him." Camet stepped forward so he was standing right in front her. "Begged us to spare you, as we pulled his body apart one limb at a time."

"You monster!" Kathryn yelled, looking up at him, anger flashed in her eyes.

"You wouldn't hurt me, you had a chance to kill me and you didn't." He was almost taunting her.

Kathryn looked back at the floor, her fists clenched as she let out the few sobs her body had left.

"Get up, Nobody." When she didn't move Camet said. "Get up, Nobody, or I will kick you to the floor." Kathryn slowly stood, her glare upon him, her fists still clenched as she fought her emotions and the wanting to punch him. "Good girl. You may return to your cell, knowing that your usefulness has expired but I'm sparing your life." He walked to the door and opened it, gesturing for her to leave, as she passed he added. "For now."

Kathryn stopped and looked at him, but he gently pushed her over the threshold then shut the door, leaving her standing in the corridor with Damor watching her. She could see his mood had changed by the way he looked at her, could feel it but the way he stood, something had made him angry. His hand clamped tightly around her arm, the their trip back to her cell started, he was moving fast, several times she almost tripped, either over her own feet or by catching the back of his heels. Her pleas of asking him to slow down went unheard.

When they got to her cell, Damor shoved her inside, then rained his anger down on her, his fists made contact with her face that she thought more than one bone was broken, then he threw her to the floor, repeatedly kicking her, until after a short time he left without saying anything, leaving Kathryn huddled up on the dirt in shock.


	9. Chapter 9

Sleeping was all Kathryn seemed to do, she wasn't sure if was because of boredom or her body trying to conserve what little energy it had. When she awoke on this occasion she was glad to find a tray of food, which she happily started tucking into. Her body hurt from the beating Damor had given her, for the first time she'd been scared that he would actually kill her with his bare hands, everything he'd done before then it had been controlled, it had been restrained. But if he was starting to lash out on her in fits of rage who knew what damage he'd do - or if he'd even stop before killing her. She had broken ribs again, she could feel it when she breathed, her left eye which she'd only just started to open was now swollen shut and at some point, though she couldn't remember it happening, he must have stepped on her left hand as she couldn't move her fingers.

She put down the bowl of cold soup and picked up the roll, looking out of her cell when she heard the main doors open and Kovat appeared.

"Lets go." He said, hurriedly opening the cell door, Kathryn looked at him in bewilderment. "Damor never locked it, I noticed it last time I was here. Look, we've got to go now."

Kathryn stood, letting out a hiss of pain as she shielded her side, still holding onto her bread roll. "It was unlocked all this time."

"Yes." Kovat helped her out of the cell, having an arm around her back but being careful not to touch her. "I didn't tell you as I didn't want our plan to get messed up."

Kathryn nodded, it made sense, she guessed. Kovat guided her out of the main door and down corridors, a couple of times they had to hide behind corners for fear of getting caught by wondering guards.

After a while they came to a pair of massive grey doors, Kovat tapped some commands onto the console on the wall and they whooshed open, revealing a massive shuttle bay, sitting in the middle was their shuttle craft, still looking exactly like it did when she last saw it.

She smiled, for the first time she felt a glimmer of happiness - of hope. But all to quickly it faded, she turned to Kovat. "I shouldn't be here. I need to go back." She moved to leave the bay, but Kovat stopped her.

"You're right, you shouldn't be here. You should be at home with your family." When he saw her hesitating he added. "Do it for the Admiral."

Kathryn looked up at the shuttle, at her way to freedom, more determined. "Let's do this."

The walkway to the shuttle was already down, she guessed they'd been inside realised they couldn't do anything and gave up, but her surprise they'd left it in good condition, if they had taken anything she couldn't tell.

"Right," she stood in front of the pilots console, placing the bread roll that had come with her on top of it, "lets get it back online, then we're out of here." She tapped the console, it lit up and sprang to life.

"I need to quickly get something." Kovat said, but didn't move from his place behind her.

Kathryn nodded as she put in her access codes, unlocking all the systems, then turned to face him, starting to feel worried. "Kovat?"

"It's a trap. I'm sorry. You have to get out of here." He grabbed her arm, pulling her towards the exit.

"What?" Kathryn yanked her arm free, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. A trap? He'd just lead her into a trap? Without waiting for him to answer she turned back to the console, about to delete her access codes and lock them back out.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you."

A hand took hold of her wrist, it was Kovat's, but it had been Gul Camet's voice coming from behind her.

"Please, you'll just make it worse for yourself." Kovat's voice was soft, but it didn't do anything to lessen her anger.

She moved away from the console, away from him, her eyes watered as she spoke. "I thought I could trust you. I thought you were my friend."

"You have no friends, Nobody." Camet snorted. "Kovat was instructed from the beginning to befriend you, to get you to trust him enough that you'd stupidly follow him here and unlock this shuttle."

"I'm sorry." Kovat whispered.

"Damor." Camet said over his shoulder, then pointed a finger at her. Damor stepped out from behind the Gul and grabbed her, pulling her back and leaving Kovat standing alone. "As for you. You warned her it was trap. Apologised to her!"

Kovat looked startled. "I lead her here."

"You warned her. I have no use for people who don't know where their loyalties lay." Camet took his gun from side holster and fired it at Kovat, hitting him in the chest.

"No!" Kathryn cried, trying to break free from Damor, regardless of how much pain it was causing her.

Kovat stood for a second, in shock, before his eyes rolled and he dropped to the floor.

Camet turned to Kathryn, she looked like a wild animal, thrashing in Damors arms, even though it made the pain in her side worse, growling at him. "Now you're usefulness has reached its limits, Nobody. Don't make me kill for your behaviour."

Kathryn stopped moving and looked at him. "You didn't have to kill him."

"Yes I did. He'd grown too close to you, he was liability. I couldn't trust him not to help you in the future. He served his purpose." He address Damor. "Take her back to her cell. I'll decide what to do with her later."

Kathryn sat in her cell, waiting for Gul Camet to summon her, waiting for him to order her execution, her side felt worse then it had before, her finger were twice their normal size. She replayed the past events back in her mind, not at any point did she think Kovat would betray her, to lore her into a trap, despite what he said, he was just like all the other Cardassian. Now the shuttle was unlocked and in their hands thanks to her being so trusting, so hopeful.

She heard the sound of the main doors, it was the only sound she ever heard in here, it seemed so loud. Gul Camet appeared with a stool, setting it down outside the bars he sat.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"You didn't have to kill him." Kathryn replied.

Pain surged through her body, one that she hadn't felt for ages, that feeling of being electrocuted, her body stiffened, though it wasn't as painful as when they'd first used the device on her. As it subsided her limbs went limp.

"Who do you work for?"

Kathryn's head flopped towards him, her words slightly slurred. "Please don't."

Another bolt of pain coursed through her, this time lasting slightly longer. She watched as. Ahmet pressed a butting on the remote he was holding, she guessed he was either increasing the pain or the length of time.

"Who are you?"

She was exhausted, starving, she needed rest, needed food. She watched as his finger started towards the button. "Nobody." His finger stopped, hovering over it. "I'm nobody."

They had broken her, she couldn't take any more of the pain, of the torture. She'd failed the Admiral, failed her family, failed herself.

They had won.


	10. Chapter 10

Kathryn now sat in a room, not a cell, there were no bars and still no window, but it had a floor and a light that she could control. She was also sat on a mattress, there was no bed frame but it was more comfy than laying on the ground with several blankets. There was a working toilet with a sink in the adjoining room. This was luxury compared to the pit she was in before. They'd also taped her fingers together to try and help them heal correctly. She had clean clothes on, a small pile sat on the floor at the foot of the bed so she could change when she wanted.

All she needed now was a good meal.

The door unlocked and the Cardassian that she'd seen talking to Damor before the explosion walked in, carrying a tray. Kathryn narrowed her eyes at him as he slowly lowered the tray to the floor, not taking his eyes off her, as though she was an animal waiting for her moment to pounce.

"Camet said not to gorge on it as that will make you sick. Eat it slowly." He quickly turned and left, scared of her, and locked the door.

She looked down at her meal, there were several plates and bowls laid out, full of meat, cheese, fruits, soup, bread rolls and two glasses, one with milk the other with water.

She drank the milk first and ate the soup, leaving the rest to snack on, then wrapped one of the blankets around her, her mind wondering to thoughts of Kovat and Admiral Paris.

Kathryn woke, for first time in a long time having had a decent nights sleep, though she couldn't count how many nights sleep she'd had in here. She fumbled around for the light switch next to her bed and flicked it on, squinting at the bright light. When her eyes had adjusted she got up and walked into the side room, a bucket of water and a towel had been placed in there whilst she'd been sleeping. She she'd her clothes and washed in the warm water, her burns were healing, turning into scars. When she was finished she lent over the sink, pouring the water over her hair, then wrapped the towel around herself and went back into the main room. She picked up a set of clean clothes from the pile then proceeded to dry and dress herself, drying her shoulder length hair as best as she could, then dump her old clothes and the towel in a pile by the door. Then sat. And waited. Waiting for what she didn't know, but anything that gave her something to do, she hated being locked in the room, even it was in better condition than the cell.

She passed her time by pacing, folding clothes, sitting, refolding clothes and more pacing until her door eventually opened and Damor stood in the entrance.

"Gul Camet wants you."

She got up from her mattress without argument and walked in front of him, noticing he left her room not only unlocked, but the door wide open. She lead the way through the corridors, feeling uneasy with Damor behind her, but when they got to the Guls room and he opened the door letting her in, she settled slightly. She was surprised to find a table with three chairs set out, on top it was laid out for a meal: plates, knives, forks and metal domes covered the table. Gul Camet sat at the head of the table, Damor took the chair at the opposite end, leaving an empty chair in the middle.

"Please, Nobody, sit down." Camet gestured towards the chair.

Kathryn hesitated, looking at them both, but with their gazes upon her, she slowly made her way to the chair and sat. Both men removed the domes that were covering the dishes, revealing various meats, vegetables, sauces, fruits and bread rolls; then started placing items onto their plates. Damor opened a bottle, pouring yellowish liquid into his glass, then hers before passing the bottle across to Camet. Kathryn sat in a stunned silence, the events in front of her seemed surreal, was she really sitting down to a meal with her captors?

"Nobody."

She looked over to Gul Camet.

"Help yourself to some food."

She nodded, then using the utensils, placed a slice of meat, a handful of vegetables and a bread roll onto her plate. She heard a chuckle from Damor but ignored it as she cut the meat into small pieces and chewed them; it tasted like beef.

"How is your meal?" Camet asked after a moment of quietness.

"It's fine. Thank you."

"Please help yourself to some more."

Kathryn nodded, placing some fruit on her plate then took a sip of her drink, it reminded her of apple juice.

"We have some entertainment." Damor informed her.

Kathryn smiled weakly, though thought it would be interesting to see what they had planned, dancing, maybe music, she tried to think positively that maybe being here, being cooperative she'd learn more about their species. "Thank you."

The main doors opened and two Cardassians walked in, dragging a semi naked, hooded figure between them. She could see see it was a man - not a Cardassian male - as they got into the light, wearing only a pair of white shorts. The guards pushed him to his knees then removed the hood; it was Admiral Paris. Kathryn gasped at the sight of her supposedly dead friend, but was relived to see, apart from looking like he'd lost from weight and sporting a black eye, he didn't seem that hurt. Then dread slowly replaced her relief as she looked wide eye at Gul Camet, who was knowingly smiling at her. She had a horrible feeling that that would all change soon.

"Something wrong, Nobody?" The Gul asked.

She shook her head, her fists clenched under the table as she resisted the urge to punch his slimy face.

Gul Camet smiled more, it made her feel sick, that smile that oozed charm, oozed power. "Let the entertainment begin then."

Kathryn watched in silent horror as the guards grabbed the Admirals hands and shackled him to the chains that once she'd hung from. She wasn't sure what they'd done or said to him, but he didn't fight back, didn't even protest, he let them chain him up, let them beat him.

Damor laughed. "Weak Federation animal."

"You can't do this."

Kathryn looked around to see who had spoken to find everyone staring at her.

"Did you say something, Nobody." Camet empathised her new name.

"I..." Kathryn stuttered, she hadn't meant to say it aloud.

"Maybe she wants to have a go." Damor smirked at her.

"I didn't..." There was no way of getting out of this.

"A test? Very good idea." Gul Camet stood and walked to the trolley she'd seen ages ago, returning with a knife, it had a thin blade, she shivered at the thought of how many ways it could inflict injury to someone.

"Here."

Obedelitny, Kathryn stood and walked over to him, he placed the handle in her hand, then put his hands on her shoulders so he could steer her to stand a few feet in front of Paris, the guards standing either side of him. He looked up at her, for a few seconds she thought she'd seen something in his expressionless face - a plea for help.

Gul Camet sat back down. "It's all down to you, Nobody. Kill him. Kill everything that he represents, everything that brought you here. Set yourself free from Starfleet, from Federation weakness. You don't need him anymore. You are Nobody!"

Kathryn's arm shook as she raised the knife, blinking back tears. "Sorry."


	11. Chapter 11

She was on her hands and knees, the knife covered in fresh blood just inches from her, around her chaos erupted, she could hear shouting from the Gul and Damor but her brain wasn't making any sense of it. She was in a haze. She'd just killed a person, she'd never killed anyone before. She'd slit his threat, his blood had gone everywhere, spraying all over her, splattering over her face; before he collapsed to the floor, his life gushing out of him, forming a puddle around his body. She wanted to heave, red droplets ran down her nose.

A pair of hands grabbed her, pulling her roughly to her feet. It was Damor, his grip tightened around her arms.

"Take her away." Gul Camet ordered. "She's all yours Damor. Make sure she's punished for her actions here."

"Gladly."

As she was dragged out of the room, Kathryn looked back to see Camet standing over his guard. Paris was nowhere in sight.

Damor took her back to her original cell, pushing her in so hard that she fell to the ground, she knew what was coming, she knew it before she'd slashed the guards throat; it was worth it though. She curled herself up as best she could, trying to shield herself, but it was of no help. Damor laid into her, smacking the side of her head against the mud, kicking her in the ribs, in her back, punching her face, when he had finished beating her, her raped her, leaving her in a bloody mess on the dirty floor. She didn't cry, no matter how much her body screamed in pain, she didn't shed any tears. They thought they'd broken her, she thought they'd broken her, but seeing the Admiral alive gave her new hope, gave her something to fight her. A small smile spread across her face as she recalled Gul Camet standing over the body of his guard.

Time passed, Damor continued to beat and rape her, bringing her food just to throw at the wall, or tip it over her, Kathryn tried to eat whatever she could salvage from the remains. She could feel herself shrieking away, spending her time huddled up in the corner waiting for the next round. She was sat, hugging her knees, leaning against the wall, when the whole building shook, making the wall and floor vibrate through her. She looked around in bewilderment, wondering if the cell was going to collapse on top of her. She thought that she'd heard the sound of an explosion, but couldn't be sure.

What felt like hours later, Gul Camet, Damor and another guard appeared at her cell, the guard unlocked her door, entered and pulled her to stand, holding her arms behind her back.

"Where is he?" Camet demanded, stepping into the small area with Damor.

"Who?" This had to be a trick, the last she'd seen the Admiral he was in the Guls room, and they'd taken him somewhere.

"The old man! Where did they take him?"

Kathryn stared at Camet for a moment, then everything started to make sense, the explosion, the building shaking, she started to smile, her smile turning into a laugh. "He's free? They rescued him?"

Her laugh was brought to a haunt by Damors fist landing on her jaw.

Camet stood inches from her face, she could feel him breathing. "How did they know where to find him?" He growled.

Kathryn shrugged, still smiling. "I don't know. But I'm glad they did."

In one swift movement, Damor had caught hold of an arm, brought it out in front of her and had it trapped between his arm and side, with his back to her so she couldn't see what he was doing, but she guessed as she felt something clamping around a fingernail. It came out in one single pull, Kathryn gritted her teeth.

"How did they know?" The Gul asked again.

"I don't know!" Kathryn wished she did know, maybe they could use it to find her.

Damor slowly worked his way through her nails, Kathryn couldn't keep her cries of pain in, until he was all out of fingernails.

"You're dismissed." Camet address the guard, who left, he then looked at Damor. "I want answers. Get them for me." He stepped outside the cell, closing the door, then after one final glance, moved out of sight.

Kathryn felt fear course through her, Damor would surely kill her now. But Camet didn't care how Starfleet knew where to find Admiral Paris, he wanted to let out his anger, show a display of power and dominance. Damor grabbed her hair and pounded her head against the wall, until she felt blood running down her forehead, he then threw her to the floor, sat across her and put his massive hands around her neck, crushing her windpipe. Kathryn struggled, trying to kick him off, trying to pry his hands from her. She could feel herself getting lightheaded as oxygen slowed through her body, she fought against her eyes from rolling back.

"Don't kill her!"

It was Camet's voice, he hadn't left, but was standing out of view. At his order, Damor let go of her and stood as she coughed and got her breath back. But the rest didn't last long, soon he had hold of her hair again, throwing her against the walls and bars, his fist landing heavy on her, every time she fell he would kick her, then pull her up for more.

By the time they left Kathryn felt a broken mess, her hands were covered in blood, wounds still slowly oozing, she was sure several bones were broken, but the pain was so intense she couldn't tell which ones. She laid on the blankets, hoping that if Starfleet didn't take her away, then death would.


	12. Chapter 12

She was awoken to a sound behind her, it wasn't loud, but enough to wake her from light sleep. She slowly, stiffly, sat up, turning to see a small glowing dot appearing in the back wall of her pit - a dot that traveled swiftly down from ceiling to floor.

Was this the beginning of another form of torture? Were they going to try and bake her inside this cell? She drew deep breaths, striving for calm, frighting fear and pain.

And then there was a ripping noise, shaking the walls slightly, a pair of arms reached in and grabbed her, hauling her roughly through the wall, now bent outward. She gasped and started to cry out involuntarily but a gloved hand was clamped firmly over her mouth. She felt herself dragged along over rough terrain, the sudden intake of fresh cold air telling her she was now outside. The thought of not knowing who this person was or what was going to happen scared her. Had Camet ordered her execution outside the building? Where they planting another trap? Or was it Starfleet? Had they finally found her?

She tried to get her footing, but it was impossible; whoever had her in his firm grip was too strong and too fast. And the pain intensified when she moved. She gave in and relaxed and allowed herself to be dragged, wincing as they went over bumps and sharp objects. Then she was sat on the floor, leaning against what felt like a tree. A faint glow of starlight provided some illumination and Kathryn realised she was indeed outside, held in the grasp of a man dressed entirely in black, hand still pressing on her mouth.

Then his mouth came closer to her ear and a voice whispered to her - a voice that sounded familiar. "Be quiet. Understand?" She nodded and the gloved hand came away from her mouth, she was aware of the other body leaning down to her, the mouth still near her ear. "Don't make any noise. Can you run?"

And then it she realised it was Justin Tighe. She shook her head, there was no way she'd be able to run, she was sure she had a broken leg. She heard a rustle in a nearby bush, making her jump and could make out other dark shapes within the area.

And then she understood: these were the Rangers, the elite commando corpse Admiral Paris had spoken of. Her partner, the intimidating Lieutenant Tighe, was one of them!

"I'm going to carry you. Can you get on my back." He shuffled around, as she climbed on his back and wrapped her arms around him, he held tightly on her legs.

They zigged and zagged through the trees, as fast as Justin could manage, at one point having to walk through a marshy swamp. Justin's lower half and parts of her legs now covered in mud.

After a few minutes, Kathryn saw a clearing and knew they had reached the transport site.

But so had a Cardassian. Damor. He stood in the clearing, holding a Toskanar on a chain. It was a powerful, sinewy animal that looked like a cross between a mountain loin and a bear, with muscular legs and a great, shaggy head. It was silent now, but straining on the chain, eager to get to them.

"Little Nobody belongs to me." Damor said.

Kathryn wanted to scream at him, but at the same time the sight of him made her feel sick. She hoped Justin didn't question her later on his words. Kathryn surmised they were still within the transgenic field that covered the building; unless they were completely into the clearing, they couldn't contact whatever ship had brought the rescue team to transport them out.

"Lie down on the ground, with your arms above your heads." Damor ordered.

"She's injured." Justin informed him, but Damor smiled, almost pleased with himself and repeated his words. Justin lowered her carefully down, then slowly lowered himself, but tumbled to his side - then came up with his phaser drawn and fired.

Nothing happened.

Kathryn stared at the weapon; it was covered with muck from the swamp and must have lost its charge. She looked up at Damor, who laughed. "Foolish Starfleet." Through the darkness she saw him unleash the huge dog. Instantly it bounded across the clearing right toward her.

She saw it as though in slow monitors: the beast opened its jaws, baring a double row of pointed teeth, frothy slaver falling from its tongue. Small, round eyes glittered like lasers in the darkness; it uttered a guttural growl of anticipation.

Suddenly there was a sickening crunch as the beast toppled over without so much of a yelp, its skull crushed. Justin stood holding a thick tree limb, the dog dead. Damor stood, standing in shock, losing precious seconds in his astonishment as the dispatch of his vicious animal. Justin turned and charge at him, his phaser dropped by her side. She grabbed it and cleaned it out, then, on wobbly legs, she stood and pointed the weapon at Damor, not expecting it to work. But it did, Damor fell, dazed and a fury rose within her; rage for what he did to the Admiral, to Kovat. To her. Without thinking, the pain being blocked by adrenal, she ran forward and snatched the branch from Justin and brought it down on the Cardassians temple and felt a surge of primal satisfaction as she felt, and heard, cartilage and bone give beneath the blow. She raised the weapon again and brought it down , hearing Justin's voice behind her ordering the beam-out. Her arms dematerialised before she could swing the branch down again.

They appeared in the sickbay of the ship, she recognised it as belonging to the Icarus. The branch was still raised in the air, making the few people in the room take a step back. She turned around to face Justin, when a voice come from behind her.

"You're safe now, Kathryn."

She turned to the Admiral, he'd lost weight, there was a shadow etched in his face, one of a man who had been through something no one should, a shadow she knew would be cast forever in her face.

He stepped forward, gently taking her hands and lowering them. "You're safe."

"I thought they'd killed you." She fought back her tears. "What if this is a trap?" She tightened her grip on the branch, pulling away from him.

"This isnt a trap, Kathryn."

"Stop calling me that!" She shrieked at him.

Admiral Paris ignored her outburst. "You're onboard the Icarus." His voice was calming, but it did nothing to calm her.

"No!" She pushed him, making him stumbled backwards, then spun around to Justin, bringing the branch down at him, he quickly deflected it, knocking it to the floor, then grabbed her around the waist, pinning her arms to her side.

"Sedate her." Paris instructed the doctor.

"No! They'll get us! We have to go back!" Kathryn thrashed against Justin, then tried kicking at the doctor as he came closer, but it was no use, the cold touch of the hypospray pressed on her neck and darkness over took her.

Admiral Paris sat in the Captains ready room in his hand was a datapadd containing the doctors report on Kathryn, though he could only detail the physical side of her injuries. But Paris didn't need him to report on her phycology, he'd seen it, seen her breaking under the will of the Cardassians before they separated, seen her outburst in sickbay. The mission would be filed as classified everything that happened would be reported when they were back at Starfleet, everything from what they were subjected to, to the rescue mission would be classified. No one would know what happen apart from a select few. The door chimed, making him jump.

"Come in."

The door whooshed open and Justin Tighe walked in, sitting on the chair opposite the Admiral that he indicated to.

"Lieutenant?"

"Permission to speak freely, Sir?" Justin requested, the Admiral nodded. "What the hell happened down there? Kathryn - Ensign Janeway - is clearly in a right mess. The doctor says his done a preliminary report, but won't let me read it -"

"That's because there's only one copy, that I currently have." The Admiral interrupted. "It's been stored straight to a padd, not onto the computer. Why the concern for Kathryn?" He asked, as far as he was aware they'd only known each the short time aboard the Icarus, even then it was a strained working relationship.

Justin sighed. "I spoke to her father during the time you were prisoners. She seems like a hardworking, decent person. And the star I dragged her out from there..." His voice trailed as he shook his head, knowing that image will stay with him forever. "I just... no one should have gone through whatever put her in that mess. I just want to know if there's some way I can help her."

Against Starfleet protocol, even though Justin was a Ranger and knew about the mission it didn't give him instant access to everything relating to it, including her medical report, Admiral Paris slide the padd over to him. "It's not easy to read, and no one must find out that I've let you read it. But there's her report."

Justin looked down at it, confused. "Why would you let me read it?"

"Because I think you can help her. But Kathryn is stubborn and will be traumatised by this. They inflicted pain on her you can't imagine, more than they did me. It will take her years to recover from this. She'll need someone strong, like you, to help her. Starfleet won't tell her family all the details, to shield them from it, she certainly won't tell them. Poor Gretchen wouldn't know how to handle it. Admiral Janeway would probably go on a one man suicide mission to kill them. She'll need you."

Justin nodded and picked up the report, skimming through it. Broken ribs. Broken leg. Malnourished. Over 50% body scarring. Lose of fingernails. 6 weeks pregnant.

"Pregnant?" Justin couldn't contain his shock or horror. "They raped her? Bastards!"

The Admiral nodded. "I can't tell you anymore than you know, most of the time we were separated. I don't even know how she became so badly scarred."

Justin handed over the padd. "We'll be back on Earth in 30 hours, she's probably best kept sedated. Sooner we get back the better." He stood to leave.

"Justin. Just how did she come to be wielding a branch?"

Justin thought, he'd seen her run at the Cardassian, the wild fury that raged in her eyes, the animalistic cry as she smashed his head in, the pleasure she seem to take from it. "She was fighting off a Cardassian."

Admiral Paris nodded and didn't question him further, after all there was stuff he wasn't prepared to talk about. "Thank you. Dismissed."

As Justin left the room, Paris picked up the padd again. He felt helpless that he wasn't able to save her from them, now she face a long road to recovery, possibly a lifetime of trauma.

=/\=

I'm hoping this isn't going to be the last update, but Kathryn isn't talking to me and I'm drawing blank. So please follow the story to be kept up to date with new chapters, thank you to those who have fav/review, means a lot. I will try and get more done, I'm currently working a Walking Dead story as well.


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